Finding the Scam
by Classical E. Centric
Summary: When JJ & Henry entered the mall that morning, they never knew that they'd be involved in a theft scam. JJ/Reid/Henry family. Reid/Rossi father/son. Belated birthday ONESHOT for Leila Grant.


**Author's Notes: Here is my CM oneshot, based on a prompt from Leila Grant. (This is a belated birthday fic for her).**

**My characters are: JJ/Reid/Henry, Rossi/Reid father/son.**

**Let me know what you think of this oneshot. Thank you so much.**

* * *

_***Prompt: JJ and Henry spend the day together shopping and Henry finds a $100 bill.  
**_

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**Finding the Scam**_**  
**_

It was an once-in-a-lifetime occurrence.

She assumed their day of shopping would go smoothly, but she never could have expected to be sitting in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City's mall security center waiting to speak to the chief of security and a police detective.

All Henry did was find a $100 dollar bill, lying on the ground, and now, the two of them were being told that they were thieves by a woman wearing what JJ could only assume were over $5000 dollars worth of designer clothes, jewelry & shoes. She could hear the woman say something about Henry being a 'little thief' and how she was a 'bad mother' for allowing Henry to 'take money without turning it into the police to see if someone reported any missing'. The detective and the mall chief were trying to convince her that little 3-year-old Henry was neither a 'thief' nor a 'threat to society'.

After the woman finished talking to the policeman and the chief of security, she trotted out past JJ & Henry, angrily muttering something like, 'Evil child…' Seconds later, the detective stepped out of the office and stated, "Ms. Jareau… come on in…"

JJ stood up slowly from the chairs and adjusted Henry in her arms. The little boy nuzzled his face into his mother's chest, hiding it from the policemen who he hadn't met yet. Finding a seat in front of the security chief's desk, she waited from the two men to say something.

"Ms. Jareau…" the detective started up.

"Agent Jareau…" JJ corrected him.

"'Agent'? Of what?"

"The F.B.I…."

"Do you have any credentials, ma'am?"

"In my purse…"

As she tried to set Henry down on the chair beside her, he whined sadly, "Noooo, Mommy!"

"Okay, Henry… Mommy won't let you down… she just has to get something from her purse…"

"No, Mommy purse… hol' me…"

"Okay, I will hold you… gentlemen, can one of you please hold this, so I can take my wallet from it?"

"That would be fine…" The chief of security retorted lightly.

Lifting her purse onto the desk with one hand, JJ kept hold of Henry with the other. As the officer held her bag, she found her pocketbook, flipping it open to reveal her badge and I.D. to the detective nearby.

"Well, 'Agent' Jareau, now that your title has been verified, we can proceed…" The chief announced aloud.

"All over a $100-dollar bill found unattended on the ground in the middle of a busy shopping centre, you have verified my title at the FBI?" She questioned snappily. "That's pretty hilarious…"

"'Agent' Jareau, we are trying to get the whole story of what happened here…"

"Then, let me tell the whole story, or allow Henry to say what he saw…"

"With all due respect, he is only 2…"

"He's three, and he's a lot smarter than you think for a child of his age… his father is a genius…"

"I bet he is…" The detective said sarcastically. "And, my wife is the Secretary of the Treasury…"

"He has an IQ of 187… can read over 20,000 words… has three doctorates, two masters' degrees, and is working on a third. He also works at the F.B.I., as does my father-in-law…"

"Daddy here, Mommy?" Henry spoke up, fisting his left eye lightly.

"No, baby boy…" She whispered to her son. "He's at work… Mommy's just talking about him…"

"Okay… can we go home now?"

"Not yet, sweetie, but soon, okay?"

"'Kay… Mommy?"

"Yes, Henry?"

"Are we in twouble?"

"No, honey…"

"I wanna talks to the poe-weece [police] mans…" The little boy piped up, before turning to face the L.E.O.'s, still sitting on his mother's lap.

"Why, honey? You didn't do anything wrong…"

"I fines da monies…"

"Agent Jareau, if he wants to talk about what happened, we would like to hear him…" the chief of security spoke up.

"He's only 3, Chief Ewert," the police detective responded. "What can he tell us that Ms. Bloskey hasn't already said?"

"May I remind you that you haven't asked me or my son about what happened?" JJ retorted back.

"Forgive me, Agent Jareau… in your own words, what occurred this afternoon?"

"Henry and I had just walked out of Nordstrom®…"

"I gots new shoes fom dare!" The three-year-old announced, lifting up his foot to show the men his new fire engine red Converse® High Top sneakers.

"And, they are very cool, little man…" the chief of security answered with a genuine smile.

"Tanks…"

"Agent Jareau, you were saying…" the detective announced.

"Yes… after leaving there, we went into BabyGap® and found Henry some clothes to make him look handsome in our family portrait…" JJ responded back.

"I gots a new sirt an' new pants an' socks fom dare!" Henry piped up again happily.

"Fun, Henry…" Chief Ewert retorted with a soft grin. "What else happened, Agent Jareau?"

"When we were finished in there, we decided to walk down to Godiva® to get some biscuits & truffles. On the way down there, Henry was pulling me over to look at something on the ground…"

"Dat's whem I sees da monies!" The 3-year-old announced with a smile.

"Henry, where was the money at?" the detective questioned aloud.

"Where da baggies are…"

"'Baggies'?"

"Henri Bendel (R)…" JJ piped up, correcting her son for the policeman. "The bill was lying on the ground out front of the store's entrance…"

"I gots it up an' I gabe to Mommy…" Henry continued on.

"Then, what happened, little man?" The security chief inquired.

"Me an' Mommy wents into da baggie store, an' gabe the monies to da lady in dare…"

"Agent Jareau, is this true?" The detective questioned. "You gave the $100 bill to the clerk in the store?"

"Yes, Detective, it is…" JJ replied confidently. "I figured that someone must have dropped it coming out of the store, so we decided to give it to the store clerk, just in case a customer or worker came back  
looking for it. I left my business card and my cell number with them also, if no one claimed the money."

"Which clerk?"

"Pretty blonde… pink dress… black heels… what does that matter?"

"It matters… so, when did you two encounter Ms. Bloskey?"

"Coming out of the store, she stopped us and screamed that we were thieves… and now, we're here…"

"Well, Agent Jareau, I think I have all I need here…"

"So, can we leave? I'd like to get my son his snack and home for his nap…"

"I don't see why not… you two aren't under arrest…"

"Then, why were we interrogated, Detective?"

"We were trying to figure out which clerk it was, who stole the money…"

"What?"

"We think that Ms. Bloskey and the clerk are involved in a theft scam that has been going around the mall recently…" The chief interjected. "We purposely dropped the money to see if someone would take it to see who would claim a theft. Three other women have claimed this same thing in the past week. Now, we have two viable suspects, thanks to you and your son."

"My husband is never going to believe this…"

"You and Henry are free to go…"

JJ was shocked… she & Henry were involved in helping to bring down a theft ring… all she was doing that day at the mall was shopping for clothes for their family portrait, and now this happens. She stood up from the chair she was sitting in, setting Henry down on his feet. Grabbing her purse and taking back her credentials, she took her little boy's hand and walked out of the security center.

"Mommy, are we getting my cookies now?" Henry whined.

"Yes, baby… we're going right now…" JJ muttered to her son. "What kind do you want?"

"Da ones wit' the 'G' on dem…"

"Good choice…"

* * *

Getting home that afternoon, JJ decided that she would explain the situation to her husband, when he got home for work. Instead of putting Henry down for his nap, she allowed her little boy to run around and play in their backyard with the family dog, Ryder. The three-year-old Irish Setter loved his time alone with the little boy, making him throw the Frisbee or ball in his hand multiple times to the child's delight. At 6:30, as she was finishing up preparations for dinner, JJ hear the front door open. Stepping out of the room, she saw her father-in-law enter the house, husband in tow.

"Hi, Dave…" She sounded, wiping her hands on the towel before embracing him. "Taking up our offer on dinner huh?"

"If you'll have me…" the goatee Italian man replied with considerate smile.

"Of course… Henry will love that you're here…"

"Ha ha ha, Jennifer… very funny…"

"What? No hugs for me?" Reid spoke up finally with a coy grin.

"You get hugs…" JJ answered, putting her arms around her husband. "And, a lot more than that…"

"Oh, I get a lot more, too… fantastic…"

The two of them shared a passionate kiss, savoring the moment as long as they could get it before something or someone would interrupt them. Hearing nails on the wood floor and the flapping of little feet, they knew their connection would be short-lived.

"Gwampa Dabe!" A small voice squealed happily.

"Hey, there's my little bambino…" Dave announced, picking the little boy up in his arms.

"Why you here?"

"Well, I'm here to eat some dinner, but most of all, to see you…"

"Is Muddie here?"

"Nope, Mudgie couldn't come… he had dinner plans with a rather large dog bone…"

"Oh, otay… come pway wit' me an' Wyder, Gwampa…"

"Hey, you two! Go & get cleaned up for dinner…" JJ announced with a smile.

"Otay… come on, Gwampa…"

"I'm coming, Henry…"

JJ giggled as she watched her son & father-in-law made their way down the hall to the nearest bathroom to wash their hands. She moved her attention back to the dinner preparing on the stove and in the oven, seeing that her husband was busily testing everything.

"Is it good?" She spoke up lightly.

"Amazing…" He answered with a mouth full of food. "I love your fettuccine alfredo con broccolo…"

"Did I hear someone say 'fettuccine alfredo con broccolo'?" A familiar voice questioned from behind them.

Turning, Dave stood before them, arms full of his grandson, clean of playtime dirt.

"Pop, my beautiful wife is finally learning to cook Italian…" Reid retorted aloud.

"Favoloso!" Rossi exclaimed with a smile. "We'll make her a true Italian yet…"

"Is I a twoo It-tao-lin too, Gwampa?" Henry questioned.

"Yep, you sure are…"

"Yay!"

"Okay, you three, go sit down… dinner's ready…" JJ piped up lightly.

The three men found their seats at the table. Dave sat next to Henry, helping the little boy put on his food-catching bib and securing him into his booster seat. Spencer sat on the other side of his son with a spot for his wife on his left side. JJ brought out the first plate of food, the fettuccine alfredo con broccolo, before moving to get the Chicken Piccata and the steamed veggie medley from the top of the stove. The men had already started to serve themselves as she returned with her hands full of the rest of their family meal.

* * *

A week had passed since the mall incident, and JJ figured that she & Henry weren't getting any recognition for helping to bring down a scamming ring.

She went back to her normal life and never considerate the incident again, until a manila envelope and a long, white, business envelope arrived on her desk at work.

The first was addressed to Henry & herself, care of the F.B.I. – Behavioral Analysis Unit., and it was from the Arlington County Police Department. Opening the sachet swiftly, she pulled out the papers inside to see a letter of apology for any and all of the trouble that the detective had caused them and an acknowledgement that they were in no way involved in the theft ring, along with a certificate of bravery and several police badge stickers for Henry.

The second envelope was addressed to just Henry Jareau-Reid, care of Agent Jennifer Jareau-Reid at the F.B.I., from the Office of Mall Security, Fashion Centre at Pentagon City, in Arlington, Virginia. She opened it and pulled out the letter within. Unfolding it the piece of paper, two items fell out: what looked like a gift card and a $100 dollar bill. Slowly, she read the letter, trying to understand why both items were inside. It stated:

"_Dear Henry,  
I would like to express my deepest apologies for causing you & your mother so much worry and undue stress. You are a brave and smart boy, and my hope is that you continue to grow and learn new things as you become a young man, and later, an adult. The enclosed items are for you to enjoy as you see fit.  
Sincerely,  
Samuel Jon Ewert  
Chief of Mall Security."_

Turning over the gift card, JJ smiled… it was for Godiva® Chocolatier, the place she & Henry were going, when the whole messy incident at the mall began.

'_He'll be so happy,' _she thought to herself. '_More cookies with the 'G' on them…'_

_**fin.**_

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_Let me know what you think. Thx._


End file.
